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Putin achieved one thing he wanted: legitimacy in the international arena. Biden said he faced a confrontation with Putin over cyberattacks, Russia’s treatment of pro-democracy activists and the need for cooperation on nuclear weapons and the Arctic.
However, defining concrete achievements was not easy, with both leaders behaving in a classical setting. Shaking up human rights issues in Russia, Putin criticized much of Wednesday’s press conference in various ways, from secret CIA prisons in the early 2000s to an attack on the US Capitol in January.
“And like Guantanamo, it is still working,” Putin said. – And it has no law, international, American, no. CIA prisons that have been opened in many states and tortured, what are human rights?
Biden said he had given Putin a list of 16 critical infrastructures that could not be attacked by cyberattacks, and even noted that Russian officials were impressed by his argument against cyberattacks using a ransom virus, such as the attack on the United States. . Colonial Pipeline. “Pipeline, completed in May.
“I explained to him that we have significant cyber defense capabilities and he knows it,” Biden said. – You don’t know exactly what they are, but they are important. If Russia really violates these essential rules, we will respond. “
Drawing “red lines” for Putin could mean that another large-scale cyberattack involving Russia would ensure a visible response from the United States that would nullify any benevolence displayed at the summit.
However, Mr. Biden emphasized that the meeting provided an important opportunity to present the United States position face-to-face.
“I know this meeting has received a lot of attention, but I regret it very simply,” Biden said. “What matters now is how we move forward,” he said, adding that the summit “did not take place in a hyperbolic atmosphere.” We’ll see if it succeeds, he said.
The Geneva meeting was not expected to resolve many of the problems between the United States and Russia. The United States is pushing for Russia to withdraw from Crimea, stop interfering in elections abroad, allow a democratic debate to take place, and stop supporting authoritarian leaders in various countries, from Belarus to Venezuela.
Putin, whose popularity has plummeted in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis and accelerating inflation, seeks to lift US sanctions and, perhaps less obviously, regain a sense of respect for Russia abroad.
In the latter respect, he got what he wanted in part from Biden, who called Russia a “great power” and a “proud” nation, unlike former President Barack Obama, who praised Russia as a “regional power.”
Moscow called the summit a success, said Andrei Kortunov, director of the Russian Council for International Affairs, founded by the Kremlin. „V. “Putin got all the recognition that Biden wanted,” he said.
But Biden also stressed that he would not miss an opportunity to pressure Putin on human rights and cases such as the imprisonment of opposition leader Alexei Navaln.
“How can I be president of the United States and not talk about human rights abuses,” Biden said. “That is why we express our concern about cases like Navaln.”
Biden said he had made it clear to Putin that if Navaln died in prison, “the consequences for Russia would be painful.”
Putin shook his hand. He accused the opposition leader of seeking medical help and treatment abroad, after security services suspected him of being poisoned, and compared Navaln-led democratic protests to some violent anti-racism demonstrations in the United States on last year, saying that he would not want the kind of unrest that would take place in his country during the Black Lives Matter demonstrations.
He also cautiously warned Biden that the new sanctions would mean “another missed opportunity” for the United States.
The ambassadors are back
The more specific message during the meeting was largely logistical: It was agreed to return the US and Russian ambassadors to their posts. Even the subject was difficult, since although Russia withdrew US Ambassador Anatoly Antonov after the US announced a new round of sanctions, US officials had long announced that Ambassador John Sullivan, who had also served in the Trump administration , I would go back to Moscow with some time, time with the family.
The two leaders also agreed to initiate a dialogue on strategic stability, including plans to replace the New START nuclear weapons treaty with a “stronger agreement” when the treaty expires in 2026.
Putin praised Biden’s support for the Minsk agreement to resolve the conflict in eastern Ukraine.
There were many symbolic nuances in the meeting. The last time the leaders of the United States and Russia met at a summit in 2018 was when Donald Trump was president of the United States. That meeting was notorious for its press conference, during which Trump sided with Russia’s intelligence services rather than his own intelligence agencies, which reported on Moscow’s interference in the 2016 presidential election. it sparked disagreements between the two main parties in Washington.
Fighters
Symbolic signs cannot mask geopolitical threats. As Putin and Biden spoke, Lithuania and Estonia reported that Russian fighter jets violated their airspace. Such incidents have taken place in the past, but such actions point to a significant threat from Russia against two NATO members and in the same week that Mr. Biden met with the Alliance leaders in Brussels.
“We cannot expect better relations with Russia than Russia wants from us. And as we continue to deal with the same Russian leader, Vladimir Putin, I fear that is where we are at risk,” said Tim Morrison, a former chief expert on Russia under Trump’s White House “The Biden administration is trying to reduce tensions, but I am not clear about what Vladimir Putin is trying to do.”
After a press conference in Geneva on a sunny afternoon, American and Russian leaders left the Swiss city optimistically.
Putin praised Biden as “a very constructive and balanced man,” and emphasized his experience as a politician. And he agreed with Biden’s assessment that the summit alone is a victory.
“For the situation to be really predictable, we must agree on the rules of the game,” Putin told reporters after the talks. – I think we can agree on this. At least I got that impression after meeting with President Biden. “
Biden and his advisers arrived at the summit, determined to quell talks about a dramatic improvement in US-Russian relations. But in the end, he did not resist a certain hopeful vision – which critics call naive – that recalls his predecessor’s policy towards Russia, saying there was “a real prospect of a significant improvement in relations.”
“I did what I came to do,” Biden said. “Obviously, nobody is interested, neither your country nor me, being in the new Cold War.”
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